New Year’s Resolution for Aspirational Travel in 2012

As we look forward to 2012, the possibilities for travel are endless. For those with a half-decent credit score, chances are you can do it for very cheap as well.

If you have not already done so, start thinking about your 2012 travel plans now. While award availability seems to follow some pattern (if space is available, award seats tend to open about a week before travel), there is no preferred time to book award flights if you don’t like nail-biting other than to book when space is available. Consequently, if you see the award space you are looking for, whether it be weeks or months prior to your travel date, you should grab it immediately.

Few things pain me more than to have a client come to me looking for help booking a first class holiday, finding the space, but then being unable to book because the clients did not have as many miles as they thought.

Relax, I am not going to start hawking credit cards everyday or turn this blog into a self-serving campaign to get you all to sign up for a credit card though me. But I strongly recommend, just as I have recently done myself, you sign up for a credit card or two to get your point balances up in the new year and position yourself to book a premium cabin award should the opportunity present itself.

Here’s what I recommend (and yes, this website does receive a referral bonus if you sign-up and are approved through the links below)–

1. Best Credit Card for United Flyers – United Visa Explorer Card

Earn up to 40,000 bonus miles

Earn 25,000 bonus miles after first use and 5,000 additional bonus miles after your first Card use and for adding an authorized user within two months of opening your account. Plus, earn 10,000 bonus miles when you spend $25,000 or more on your Card each calendar year.

Your first year is free

Pay no annual fee for the first year you are a Cardmember, a $95 value.

Check your first bag for free

As a Cardmember, you and your companion can each check your first bag for free when you fly United and Continental-operated flights, up to a $50 savings per person round trip.

Enjoy priority boarding privileges

You’ll be invited to board your flight ahead of general boarding with priority boarding.

Visit the United Club with two passes every year

Relax in style before your flight and enjoy complimentary snacks, beverages and Wi-Fi.

Earn double miles on United purchses

Earn 2 miles per $1 spent on tickets purchased from United or Continental and 1 mile per $1 for everything else.

Redeem MileagePlus miles for any seat, any time, on any United flight

There are no restrictions or blackout dates. If seats are available for sale, they can be redeemed at the Standard Award level – a benefit that will be reserved for Cardmembers and Elite travelers beginning in early 2012.

Your miles don’t expire

Your miles don’t expire as long as you are a Cardmember with no limit to the number of miles you can earn.

What specifically interests me is the last-seat availability on United flights–this is a very valuable benefit that by itself makes the card worth it for United flyers who do not have elite status.

2. Best Overall Credit Card – Chase Sapphire Preferred

Limited Time Offer! Earn 40,000 bonus points after you spend $3,000 in the first 3 months- that’s $625 toward travel!

2 points per dollar spent on travel and dining & 1 point per dollar spent on all other purchases.

Use 20% fewer points when you redeem for travel. Just book your flight, cruise, or other travel through Ultimate Rewards(SM)

The great thing about this card is the transfer partners, particularly Hyatt (where rooms start at only 5,000 points per night) and United/Continental, which currently has America’s (and perhaps the world’s) best frequent flyer program in Mileage Plus. No foreign transaction fees are a plus as well.

I’ll post my reflections on 2011 and a look forward to my personal travel in 2012 later in the week. So much of my travel this year (and next) will be made possible by generous credit card sign-up offers. Don’t be the chump that pays full-fare–with a little planning and judicious use of mileage-earning credit cards, you can enjoy business and first class flying and five star hotels for a fraction of what those around you are paying.

upgrd.com has financial relationships with some of the cards mentioned here, and upgrd.com may be compensated if consumers choose to apply for these links in the content, and ultimately sign up for them.

About Author

Matthew

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he
travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 120
countries over the last decade. Working both in the aviation industry
and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in the New York
Times, Chicago Tribune, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, BBC, Fox News,
CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC, Al Jazeera, Toronto Star, and on NPR. Studying
international relations, American government, and later obtaining a
law degree, Matthew has a plethora of knowledge outside the travel
industry that leads to a unique writing perspective. He has served in
the United States Air Force, on Capitol Hill, and in the White House.
His Live and Let's Fly blog shares the latest news in the airline
industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs and promotions, and
detailed reports of his worldwide travel. His writings on
penandpassport.com offer more general musings on life from the eyes of a frequent traveler. He also founded awardexpert.com, a
highly-personalized consulting service that aids clients in the
effective use of their credit card points and frequent flyer miles.
Clients range from retirees seeking to carefully use their nest egg of
points to multinational corporations entrusting Matthew with the
direction and coordination of company travel.

2 Comments

thanks for this – we’re planning on traveling this year and will use the sapphire to offset some cost. i’m a bit clueless when it comes to this but do you know if i can transfer points from a competitor’s card to this one once established?